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Friday, December 30, 2016

On the eve of 2017, I’d like to share seven movie wishes for the coming year. Perhaps some Hollywood magic will make every one of them come true.

I wish for:1. Wonder Woman to be wonderful.If DC is ever going to have its first decent film, I’d bet on 2017 and Gal Gadot. (Mark your calendar for June 2)

2. No more production-company vanity logos that play before films. (Yeh, I wish.)Don’t get me wrong, I love a single, studio intro (Universal, MGM, Paramount), and it was cute when PIXAR’s lamp intro played before Disney’s, but every film today seems to play a parade of hack mini-shorts featuring poorly designed logos. It’s a mood killer and those logos need to be in the end credits.

3. Sofia Coppola to make our day. Hopefully, Coppola’s remake of Clint Eastwood’s 1971 film, The Beguiled, will revive the Western and not get, you know, lost in translation. (June 23)

4. The Academy Awards to move past #OscarsSoWhite.This year’s quality collection of films all but guarantee nominees with diversity, so my wish is that the show gets back to business and the biggest controversy this year is whether “City of Stars” from La La Land is better than Lin-Manuel Miranda’s “How Far I’ll Go,” from Moana. (Oscar Night, February 26)

5. More original musicals.Sing Street and La La Land were two of the best films of 2016; perhaps they started a trend of non-stage musicals on film. For starters, I wish for All Eyez On Me, the Tupac biopic, 2 deliver. (June 16)

7. A Hugh-mongous year for Hugh Jackman.Jackman has rocked many iconic scenes on film, but he’s never had a great movie. Will Logan be the Wolverine film we always wanted? (March 3). Or will Hugh find his best role as P.T. Barnum in The Greatest Showman (December 25)? I’m wishing for both.

Of course I'd also like to see new films from directors Damien Chapelle, Barry Jenkins, Kenneth Lonergan, James Cameron, Richard Curtis or Alexjandro Inarritu — but I kinda know that none of those are happening, so I sure hope these seven movie wishes come true. Happy 2017, everyone!

Wednesday, December 28, 2016

The first disappointing thing about Jennifer Anniston’s new
film, Office Christmas Party, is that it is not a sequel to her Mike Judge film
Office Space. The next disappointing thing is, well, everything that follows.

There is a funny holiday film somewhere starring T.J, Miller
(Silicon Valley), Jason Bateman (Arrested Development) and Kate McKinnon
(Saturday Night Live), but this is a lazy effort. It’s the same naughty, party-gone-wrong film we’ve seen before, and less fun than most.

Aniston plays a woman named Carol, but she’s basically “Rachel”
trying to act like what a tough businesswoman might be like. She must not know
any. It’s embarrassing and not funny at all.

There is one big laugh in the movie that comes from Carol’s
Uber driver (Fortune Feimster), who ignites her average comic line with perfect
comedic delivery. I was laughing all the way. Hollywood should snatch Fortune up
for a starring role. Now that would be a party.

Simply put: Skip this year’s Office Christmas Party and avoid a hangover.

The first seconds of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story are telling. The film opens with that familiar blue title card that lets us know the story takes places “A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away,” but it quickly ditches the familiar iconic crawl of yellow story. Similarly, this Star Wars “standalone” film has nods to the legacy, but isn’t afraid to throw much of the formula out the window.

The result is refreshing, but not epic.

Fans of the original films will remember that “many died to bring us this information” and a team of Rebels stole the plans for the Death Star that revealed its weakness and set the stage for the 1977 film. This film is their story, and (spoiler alert), many die. This film puts the war in “Star Wars” from the first scenes of the film until the final, Invasion of Normandy-inspired battles.

None of the previous films without the presence of Harrison Ford’s Han Solo (Star Wars: Episodes I-III) have worked; a bit of a problem for the expanding franchise. Unfortunately, Rogue One offers no break out characters. Even Jyn (Felicity Jones) is a less-interesting Rey.

To compensate, Rogue throws in some familiar faces for minor roles: Darth Vader, Mon Mothma, AT-ST Walkers, a CGI-resurrected Grand Moff Tarkin — and more — all make stunning appearances. It works.Rogue One is not a landmark film, but it’s clearly the best action film of the year. More importantly, it sets up a world of cinematic possibilities for Star Wars’ future. That alone is pretty exciting.Simply put: The final storm-the-beach sequence through the final scene is awesome and very satisfying, but none of the characters are. Rogue One sheds the weight, but doesn’t carry it. Award potential: A likely nominee in Best Visual Effects and Best Sound and Best Sound Mixing categories, but it won’t be a contender for Best Picture or Best Score (without John Williams).

Tuesday, December 27, 2016

I should note that odds were 100-to-1 that I would swoon over an old-Hollywood throwback film and original musical starring Crazy, Stupid Love’s Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling. But will you?

If you can sit (without squirming) through the film’s first five-minutes, which is an all-out, non-satirical ensemble number, you’ll experience the most-gushing romance on-screen this year, the most captivating set pieces of 2016, the splashiest costumes of the year and original musical numbers that transport you to something that is more in the future than the past.

Director Damien Chazelle (Whiplash) has created the film event of the year.

In addition to Chazelle’s vision, this film also owes a lot to the onscreen couple. If this film starred, say, Julianne Hough (Footloose) and Ben Affleck (Gone Girl), this might have been the next Xanadu. Because of Stone and Gosling’s modern and inherent coolness individually, I surrendered to the song and dance storytelling. Plus, there’s that chemistry thing; they are this decade’s Kate & Leo. Together, they have the star power of the giants that made movies like this a century ago.

Am I still swooning?

Simply put: I can’t stop singing the praises of La La Land. Go see this one on the big screen.

Award potential: It will be nominated for every major Academy Award and will battle Moonlight for Best Picture in February. Oscar loves to reward films about L.A., but they love to make a social statement in political times too. We'll see in two months.

Either way, this is a good year for the Academy to reward Emma Stone (Birdman, The Help).The Ten Buck Review: Worth ten bucks.

Sunday, December 11, 2016

The Golden Globes are voted on by The Hollywood Foreign press, which is an odd bunch of 90 foreign journalists who choose to live in Southern California and nominated and voted for The Martian as Best Motion Picture Comedy last year. Who knows what they think? Well, I might. I have an 87% accuracy rate, so here goes:

Best Motion Picture (Drama) Hacksaw RidgeHell or High Water LionManchester by the SeaMoonlightSpoilers: Any of these "acting performance" films could sneak in: Fences, Hidden Figures or Jackie

Best Motion Picture (Comedy or Musical)La La Land Florence Foster Jenkins The Lobster

20th Century WomenSing Street

Spoilers: A true comedy such as Hail Caesar, Nice Guys or Deadpool could steal a spot ("Spy" was a best picture nominee last year.)

Best Actor (Drama)Casey Affleck, Manchester by the SeaJoel Edgerton, Loving

The LobsterManchester by the Sea MoonlightSpoilers: La La Land,Jackie, Fences

Best Motion Picture – AnimatedKubo and the Two StringsMoanaMy Life as a ZucchiniSingZootopiaSpoilers: Finding Dory, The Red Turtle, or Sausage Party

Best Original SongRunnin', from Hidden FiguresCity of Stars, from La La LandHow Far I’ll Go, from MoanaGo Now, from Sing StreetCan’t Stop the Feeling!, from Trolls (ugh.)Spoilers: Heathen by Tweny One Pilots, from Suicide Squad

Friday, December 9, 2016

For holiday viewing, you can never go wrong with It’s a Wonderful Life, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, A Christmas Story, Elf or Miracle on 34th Street. But I know you already thought about those flicks. So what else is there to watch?

Finding a quality movie that matches the chestnuts-roasting mood of the holidays is tricky. My mistakes of Christmas past include renting the holiday hatefest Four Christmases, paying ticket price for Ben Affleck’s Surviving Christmas and binge-watching BBC’s 1950’s drama Call The Midwife. Whoa, didn’t need to see that.

These holiday choices and crowdpleasers should make for a merry Netflixmas:

1. The Shop Around The Corner (1940)If you’re shopping for a romantic comedy, go for the film that inspired You’ve Got Mail (1993) and this year’s Tony-nominated musical revival She Loves Me. This black-and-white film starring James Stewart and Margaret Sullivan is zippy, witty, festive and it hits all the right notes. Airs on Turner Classic Movies (TCM) on December 15 and 24. Available on iTunes for $2.99.

2. A Very Murray Christmas (2015)Seen Scrooged one time too many? Bill Murray stars as himself in this Sofia Coppola film that features holiday-inspired, musical duets with Miley Cyrus, Chris Rock and Jason Schwartzman. I didn’t make any of that up. It’s available on Netflix.

3. Die Hard (1988)Could it be the Christmas office party setting? Maybe it’s the soundtrack featuring Run DMC’s Christmas in Hollis? Or perhaps it’s just that Bruce Willis’ John McClane wants to get back and save the love of his life named, ahem, Holly. But whatever it is, by golly, this "How Hans Gruber stole Christmas" tale is the ultimate holiday action flick. Available on the IFC cable channel on December 15, iTunes, and Amazon Prime for $3.99.

4. The Family Man (2000)Here's a lighthearted way to get your It's a Wonderful Life fix, and remember that Nicholas Cage used to be dynamic in film — all at the same time. Cage carries every scene of this one like a new millennium Jimmy Stewart. Available on HBO Go and HBO Now.

5. An American Tail (1986)Hanukkah doesn’t get played out much in film, but when young Fievel Mousekevitz gets his signature blue hat as a Hanukkah present from his father, who explains its heritage, there won’t be a dry eye or a creature stirring in the house. Available on Starz and Encore.

6. Radio City Christmas Spectacular (2007)Forget to see a show with holiday music during the holiday busy-ness? Want something festive to play in the background while wrapping presents? Watch New York City’s Rockettes perform their magic in this feature. Spoiler alert: Santa appears. Available on Netflix and Amazon Prime.

7. Bridgette Jones’s Diary (2001)Long before there were ugly Christmas sweater parties, Bridget (Rene Zellweger) first met the reindeer-sweater adorned Mark Darcy (Colin Firth) at a holiday party. Fifteen years later, you can still love this rom-com and Bridget “just as she is.” Available on Amazon, and iTunes for $2.99.

8. Holiday Inn (1942)If you’re like me, you watch White Christmas (1954) every year (Netflix). However, if you’re looking for a change, you should check out the film that introduced the Irving Berlin song years before. Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire celebrate a year’s worth of holidays in an overshadowed classic that was nominated for three Academy Awards and won one too (Best Original Song). Available on iTunes for $9.99.

9. The Preacher's Wife (1996) This remake of The Bishop's Wife, directed by Penny Marhsall and starring Denzel Washington and Whitney Houston, is a little too sweet for most times of year, but it's a light good-spirited crowdpleaser that pairs well with the holidays.

10. Love Actually (2003)Go get the sh*t kicked out of you by Love Actually. This modern classic only gets better with each viewing. I want to hold a sign up for Richard Curtis’ 2003 film that says,“to me you are perfect.” It just is. Available for free with your subscription to Netflix, and iTunes for $2.99.

10.5 Fireplace For Your HomeDidn’t see anything that matches your chestnuts roasting vibe? Try this hour-long stream of a fireplace burning. Available on Netflix.

Monday, December 5, 2016

While watching the relationships develop in Manchester by the Sea, I had a passing thought that I hadn’t seen anything like this since You Can Count On Me (2000), the generically-titled film starring Laura Linney and introducing Mark Ruffalo. So I wasn’t terribly surprised to Google the director and find they share the same one, Kenneth Lonergan.

Lonergan has only directed three films in that time, so I’m expecting another winner in the year 2032. Manchester by the Sea is one of the best films of the year, telling a story of pain and complication with elements of humor and laughter realistically woven in just like life. I was completely invested in these characters and transplated to the small towns of Cape Ann for a little over two hours.

Producer Matt Damon was set to play the leading role early on but other commitments intervened, giving the part to Casey Affleck. Whew! We are blessed; Affleck is subtle and superb in an uncompromising performance.Simply put: See Manchester on the Sea. Award potential: Look for nominees in all major Oscar categories beginning with Best Picture. Expect high-profile nods for Affleck as Best Actor and Michelle Williams for Best Supporting Actress. I would nominate Affleck’s onscreen nephew, Lucas Hedges, but it’s a long shot for Best Supporting Actor for a relative newcomer.